VILLAGE CHARACTERS.-No. VII. which had sported over the green turf refused to carry her frame any more; and the hands that had stripped it of the COLLEYBERRY C BLESSED be the sons and daughters of lowly daisy, gathered up upon her tencharity! -"Consecrated be The spots where such reside!" If these 66 angels of mercy" had not walked the earth, the helpless frame of her who lies beneath this lowly sod, had known a bitter lot indeed while it sojourned here. She must have been the inmate of a parish workhouse, the associate of crabbed age, and boisterous youth; of the idiot and the knave; of the hardened and the profligate; of much that is unlovely and distressing in human nature. As it was, she was enabled to spend her time in reading her Bible, and in communing with her God. The hand of charity, it may be, snatched her from ruin; for, oftentimes, it is not only the body that is benefited by the bounty of the benevolent, but the soul likewise. Had this poor daughter of affliction, over whom I shed a tear of affectionate remembrance, been left to such corrupting society, as was to be found in parish workhouses in days gone by, instead of that sincere piety, and fervent gratitude to God and man, which possessed her mind, it is to be feared she would have sat brooding over her infirmities, and have been a partaker of the impieties of her companions, for, "Example hath a louder tongue than precept." Such were my musings as I sat upon the grave rail of Colleyberry C-—. Gentle reader, she was a daughter of affliction, in the deepest sense of the word. She was born of parents in affluent circumstances, and her life promised fair to be one full of joy. No infant feet tripped lighter over the green turf than hers; and no fingers plucked the daisy more nimbly from thence. Age has informed me, that she was the life of her airy and youthful companions, and the joy and delight of her parents; that she seemed formed to be happy, and to spread happiness around her path in life. But her morning of joy, cloudless though it was, was succeeded by a day of gloom, as regards this world's happiness. One bright summer evening, after she had been unusually gay among her innocent companions, she sat upon the dew-besprinkled grass, and from that hour she lost her activity. The feet der arms, and henceforth, without interruption, let the flowers bud, blossom, and perish, according to the course of nature. Added to this calamity, another soon visited poor Colleyberry. The dark shadows of adversity fell over her parents, and she was left helpless in the world. But she was not hopeless. The hand of charity was stretched forth to her aid, and she lived a monument of gratitude to her benevolent friends. It was in this season of affliction that I first became acquainted with Colleyberry C. In my youthful visits to the cottages of the poor, hers was one I could never pass by. There was something irresistibly attractive in that cottage. Her sweet and placid smiles, and the tones of her gentle voice, called forth some of the best feelings of human nature in the visitant, and gave him a high sense of the delights which arise from the exercises of humanity. "Let others," I have often exclaimed, as I passed over the threshold of the cottage doors, "choose the noisy delights of the world; be it mine to visit the cottage of this daughter of affliction." There were two traits in the character of Colleyberry C- peculiarly pleasing. These were her gratitude and her resignation. "How much," she would often exclaim, "have I to be thankful for! To what depths of misery should I have sunk, but for kind friends!" And then she would look up to the Giver of all good, and praise him for his mercies. "It is from his hands," she would add, "that I receive these bounties. As the ravens were directed by the Almighty to feed Elijah in the wilderness, so are my kind friends inclined by Him to feed me in this wilderness of sorrow." And these were not mere words. A painter, in search of a model for a face expressive of gratitude, might have found one of rare value in poor Colleyberry. Her thankfulness, moreover, was not confined to those who sustained her poor frame in life from their rich abundance, but to those who showed her any little acts of kindness. To move her chair from the table to the window, or from the window to the table, elicited her warm expressions of gratitude; but still more thankful was she to those kind friends, who, on the sabbath, drew her in a chaise, supplied by the hand of bounty, to worship in the house of God. along, I have watched her countenance, expecting to discern some symptoms of impatience, and some slight flush of desire to escape from her long and dreary confinement. But I have watched in vain. Like a poor bird, long immured in its cage, she had learned to be joyous in her imprisonment. Her countenance invariably expressed the sentiment of the "Since 'tis thy sentence I should part And here I would say a few words to known a kind word melt even the hearts "Let love through all your actions run." The resignation of poor Colley berry was as conspicuous as her gratitude. Sometimes have I sat with her at her window, in a calm summer evening, when the world at large were enjoying its delights in roaming abroad; and as they gaily passed Take all, great God, I will not grieve, able, because poor Colleyberry was a true lover of nature. and the glimpse of a green pasture, was "Although the Almighty Maker has, throughout, And tutored, with a relish more exact; 66 COWPER. And "I can enjoy a sight of the works of the Almighty," poor Colleyberry would frequently exclaim, though I am not permitted to roam among them; and I can be thankful for this mercy.' she would, also, frequently compare her own lot with that of her fellow sufferers in this world, and conclude that hers and might have been a more bitter one; that the Almighty had afflicted her for wise and gracious purposes. Such, reader, was poor Colleyberry She lives in the memory of the writer of this sketch, and will till memory fails to perform its duty. As I pass by her cottage, I often fancy that 1 see her placid countenance looking forth upon the works of creation; and beaming with gratitude and resignation. But she has exchanged the prison of her cottage for the prison of the grave, as regards her earthly frame; while her spirit has exchanged earth for heaven. That doubtless roams abroad, unconfined, in the boundless space of the paradise above. The hand of charity materially assisted its flight thither. But for that, indeed, it might never have attained such happiness; it might have sunk to the regions below. Blessed, then, be the sons and daughters of charity! "Consecrated be The spots where such reside !” ON GOING INTO WORLDLY COMPANY. LET us but have a right motive for doing so; and I think we may safely go into any company whatever. The word of God affords us two valuable rules for all our actions; and if we would set them always before our eyes, I believe we should seldom be at a loss as to the conduct we ought to pursue. "Whether, therefore, ye eat, or drink, or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God." "And, whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him." Let us, then, always ask ourselves, before It is a Scripture truth, that "it is more we set about any study, or employment, blessed to give than to receive." The act or enter into any company, Am I doing carries its own blessedness with it. What this to the glory of God? Is it my exquisite pleasure must the friends of sole, or at least, my principal motive? poor Colleyberry C- feel at the re- Can I do it in the name of the Lord membrance of her gratitude, and at the Jesus? Can I boldly say, it is such an thought, that they were the means of action as he would approve of? And rescuing her from the lowest depths of can I look up to Him, all the time I am degradation! It is true, that all to whom doing it, for His sanction and blessing? charity is bestowed, are not thus grateful; If you can answer this question satisfacand it is equally true, that some receive torily, the action, whatever it be, must the donor's alms without need. But this be right; and there can be no danger does not lessen the pleasure of bestowing attending the performance of it. If, on bounties, nor should it stop the flow of the contrary, your mind recoils from charity. The sun in the heavens shines, even asking such a question, be assured and the grateful showers descend, alike there is something wrong in it, and that upon the grateful and the ungrateful. you would do well to give it up. It is a We see the fields of the wicked flourish hard lesson to our carnal hearts, but one and bring forth fruit abundantly, as those which the love of Jesus can make easy of their righteous neighbours. If the to us; that from the moment we take Almighty made a distinction between refuge at the cross of Jesus, and are man and man, then might we. If he "washed from our sins in his blood;" withheld his bounties from the un- from that happy moment we are no grateful, then might we. If he bade longer our own,' and must make it our the sun to shine in all its orient glo- one business to "glorify God in our ries, and the rain to fall, upon this body and spirit, which are God's." This man's field, and forbade them to impart seems to me the great and marked diswarmth and nutriment to his neighbour's, tinction between the Christian and the then might the affluent borrow the exam-worldling. The one lives to himself; ple, and withhold their bounties from the ungrateful and undeserving, and let them perish. He cannot possess genuine charity, who, because he has discovered one object unworthy of his bounties, seals up his purse, and withholds it from others. Why should he act thus? Real kindness is the same in the sight of God, (to whom he in reality gives,) whether bestowed upon the worthy or the unworthy, and he who manifests it, will surely meet with the same acceptance through the great and only Redeemer. Sons and daughters of affluence, then, withhold not your charity from the poor and afflicted. THE RECORder. 66 the other "to Him who died for him, and rose again." The one consults his own pleasure, ease, and safety, "leans to his own understanding," and seeks his own glory. The other prays, that his will may be quite swallowed up in the will of Jesus, ceases from his own wisdom," and makes "Christ his wisdom." He no longer "receives the honour which cometh of men;" but desires that Christ, the Author of all his good things, may have all the glory of them. His fleshly nature, or, as St. Paul calls it, "the old man," strives hard against this, and would lead him to please and honour himself again; and this is the great conflict between the flesh and spirit, which makes the Christian life so truly called a warfare. This conflict has already begun in you, my dearest friend, and will never cease, till death takes you from sense and self, to where you shall see Jesus as he is, and wonder that you could ever prefer anything to Him. No wonder you find it a hard and strange conflict. Parting with self-seeking, self-honouring, and self-righteousness, is far more painful than cutting off a right hand, or plucking out a right eye. With man, indeed, this is impossible; but with Jesus "all things are possible." Taking this consideration with us, then, that Christ, not self, is to be the end of all our actions; and that, "whether we eat or drink," or speak, or go in or out, or are alone, or in company, engaged in study, or recreation, we must do all to the glory of God," and "in the name of the Lord Jesus;" I think it will give us a very different view of our duty, as to worldly company and employment, from any that worldly wisdom or policy can give us. It cannot be, however, for the glory of God, that we should show ourselves morose and unsociable. The friends and relations we have are His gifts, and therefore must not be despised or neglected. Besides, we ought to bear in mind, that the redeemed of Christ are "the salt of the earth," "a peculiar people,' ‚" "created anew in Christ Jesus," for the very purpose of "showing forth his praise ;" and how can we do this, if we shut ourselves out altogether from the world? It is false humility, which makes us say, I can never do any good; for the meaner the instrument, the more is the glory of God displayed in doing good with it; and as it is all God's doing, and not ours, we have no reason to be proud of it; but rather to be abased at the sight of our own unfitness. I own to you, that I consider it the greatest blessing, to a worldly family, to have but one Christian among them, (though I know they think it a sad interruption;) for who can tell, but God may hear the prayers and tears of that one, and make him or her the messenger of peace to the rest? Thus far, then, I think it must be right to go into worldly company, in the discharge of relative duties, not plainly inconsistent with the word of God; or to avail ourselves of any pro vidential opportunities of Christian usefulness. Let us, however, be careful, that our own spiritual state is not affected by it; for we can never be required to enter into anything to the hurt of our own souls. But, on the other hand, I think, if we really love Christ, this occasional mixing with worldly company, will be rather a sacrifice than a pleasure to us. For, think what it is to go among worldly people, "in the name of the Lord Jesus, ," and "to the glory of God." Even if we do not feel ourselves called on to speak to them directly on the subject; still, if we keep this aim in view, in how many little things must we show that our sentiments are opposite to theirs! and if they know that we profess religion, we may be almost sure, that they view us with secret dislike and contempt; for "the carnal mind is," and always will be, "enmity against God" and his people.—M. J. Graham. first CAOUTCHOUC, OR INDIAN RUBBER. THIS singular substance was brought into England about the middle of the eighteenth century, from South America, as ballast for ships. For many years its only use was that of removing the marks of lead pencils from paper; and had no other been discovered by the searching eye of modern science, it would, from its value to the artist, have been worthy of careful examination; but its application to many other purposes, and especially in the preparation of articles of clothing, have increased its importance, and made many persons feel an interest in its history, who would otherwise have had but little curiosity. Caoutchouc is a juice which exudes from several shrubs found in South America and Java: but although many plants have been named as producing it, that from which it is obtained in the greatest abundance, is called by botanists the Siphonia cahuca, or Hevea guianensis. To obtain this juice, an incision is made through the bark of the shrub, and as it exudes it is spread upon moulds of clay, and then dried either in the sun or in smoke. It is the latter process which gives the dark colour that distinguishes much which is brought into the English market. The juice, as it exudes from the tree, is of a pale yellow colour, and of the con sistence of cream. After a short exposure to the air, there is a separation of parts, and a light serous fluid, and a thick coagulum are formed; the former soon evaporates, and the latter is consolidated, forming a tough and extremely elastic substance. When the caoutchouc has been once hardened, there is no means of bringing it again into the soft and liquid state. By long boiling in water it may be softened, but when removed from the boiling liquid, and exposed to the action of the air, it hardens again. The natives of Guiana have, we are informed, been long in the habit of making various articles of clothing, especially boots, from the caoutchouc. This circumstance, and the knowledge of its property of resisting the action of water, both as a solvent and a percolator, probably induced the early experimenters to make it available for the purposes of European dress. As it could not be brought into Europe in a fluid state, the first object of those who wished to add it to their national manufactures was to discover a solvent; which inquiry seems to have attracted the attention of the French Academy so early as the year 1768; but the experiments then made were unsuccessful. of all countries busied themselves in attempts to discover some substance in which caoutchouc could be dissolved, for a long time without success; but a means was at last found of reducing it to a liquid state, and its applications in the European manufactures then rapidly increased, and a number of patents were taken out by sanguine inventors, many of which, we have reason to believe, have been more than ordinarily profitable. Alcohol has great powers as a solvent, but it has no effect upon caoutchouc. It is dissolved by turpentine, and by ether when deprived of alcohol, and upon evaporation again assumes a solid state. It is also dissolved by linseed and other fixed oils, as well as in the oils of lavender and sassafras. By its union with the fixed oils it forms a varnish, which would be exceedingly useful in many manufactures, but it has not the property of drying. The most useful solvent, however, and that which is most commonly employed, is naphtha, a substance distilled from the native petroleum, (sometimes called rock oil,) or gas tar. In a recent number of a French philosophical journal, it is stated, that caoutchouc may be worked with great advantage if first treated with ammonia. According to this process, the indian rubber is first cut into shreds, and then covered with caustic ammonia, in which state it is left for two or three months. By this contact the ammonia is discoloured, taking a brownish hue, and the caoutchouc assumes a bright and silky appearance, swelling greatly, but still retaining its elasticity. In this state it is easily converted into an emulsion by turpentine. Some years after, Dr. Harrison, a resident in India, commenced an interesting series of experiments upon the application of caoutchouc to articles of apparel. His first attempt was to cover certain moulds which he had formed, with the juice, and by applying one coat after another, he succeeded in making gloves, boots, and other necessary articles of dress; but as none of these retained their shape, he found it impossible to manufacture, in this manner, clothing having any pretence to that elegance of form which is, in the estimation of Europeans, almost indispensable. His next attempt was to saturate articles already formed with the caoutchouc, and in this he was more successful. Having immersed cotton stockings and gloves in the fluid, he had the satisfaction to find that they absorbed it, and that the articles were made, by this Cloth prepared with caoutchouc is now process, quite waterproof. He then pro- so common, that almost all persons much ceeded to dip nankeen in the same way, exposed to the weather are provided with and at last obtained a complete suit of some article of clothing made of this subwearing apparel prepared with caout-stance. A patent for the preparation of chouc, and capable of resisting water for an indefinite period of time. These experiments soon attracted the attention of philosophers; and the chemists Caoutchouc is unaffected by the action of many of the most corrosive gases and acids, and is therefore exceedingly useful to the chemist for many purposes in which these substances are employed, especially when formed into tubes. Caoutchouc tubes are also used for the stomach-pump, an application which has rendered that valuable instrument far more convenient for use than it could otherwise have been. this manufacture was obtained some years since by Mr. Macintosh, whose name has been given to the material. The preparation of the cloth is exceedingly |